Yesterday: Just Another Tuesday

Yesterday, Tuesday . . . or Martes . . . was just another day in Paradise!

I was up at 4:30am, blogged and worked on my lecture on the English in the Caribbean and Trinidad, until 6:30, when I fed the dogs and drove into Boquete to pick up my tile guys and plumber. At least until yesterday we were making good progress on getting the little casita finished. I’m remodeling what was housing for our Gnobe Bugle worker into a little casita for my brother. He currently lives in downtown Boquete but has gotten to the point where he needs closer supervision because of his health issues. I promise pictures of this project . . .

The plot sickens . . .

So I told you yesterday about the plumbing woes my contractor left me . . . and the well we have in the floor of the house where a pipe has separated or something. I should have just ripped up my floor and dug a hole for water rather than sinking all my money in the ground for two wells, one of which works occasionally in the wet season, which of course is when I really need the water. So now it looks like we are going to have to start ripping up our expensive tile shower to find the leak.

Mid-day . . . time to breathe . . . Turns out, after chipping away for a day and a half at the cement wall, that the plumber just didn’t bother to glue the hot water pipes together . . . hence the leak. $60 for a day-and-a-half of my plumbing engineer (really!) who, thankfully, works like a surgeon and not like a demolition engineer. So, another day to repair the wall, and hopefully, no more leaks . . . although knowing the half-ass quality of my builder’s plumber . . .

And . . . and this is not for the faint of heart . . .

Warning: The following contains explicit photos which may be upsetting to some . . .

Especially if you’re about to move to Panama thinking that even with the irresponsible contractor gang, you have found “paradise” . . .

Yes, we have found a few snakes on our finca in Palmira, about 10 minutes up the mountain from the town of Boquete. It’s rainy season, so there are more snakes out and about. And we’ve found a few baby fer de lance . . . but yesterday, this . . .

That’s Oscar Torres.  Oscar is my resident electrical and plumbing engineer . . . really, he has engineering degrees in both.  He’s helping me redo the casita for my brother, and is now helping me discover the elusive leak in our house.   What he’s holding, that looks at first like a coffee stake, is actually a 114 cm, or 45″ long fer de lance that my Gnobe Bugle worker, Alfonso, found up on the ridge on the other side of our finca.

So, we know they are around . . . The locals call fer de lance “equis” because of the “X” on their back, and also “singing snakes” because at night the fer de lance actually makes a sound.  My Indian guy hears it, and my wife has heard it, but there is so much noise in the forest at night that I can’t distinguish it. 

According to Wikipedia . . .

This species is mostly nocturnal, hiding in leaf litter or among roots during the day, and are found in a range of different habitats. Juveniles are often semiarboreal and even adults are sometimes encountered in bushes and low trees.

Compared to the common lancehead, B. atrox, these snakes have been described as excitable and unpredictable when disturbed. They can, and often will, move very quickly, usually opting to flee from danger, but are capable of suddenly reversing direction to vigorously defend themselves. Adult specimens, when cornered and fully alert, must be considered extremely dangerous. In a review of bites from this species suffered by field biologists, Hardy (1994) referred to it as the “ultimate pitviper.”

Our Indian guy found this snake while he was cleaning out brush from beneath a coffee tree near the border of our farm with a neighboring farm that is not maintained. We use a Roundup-type chemical to control weeds around the coffee trees which the snakes don’t like. This particular guy just didn’t notice the fence line he slithered under! While very venemous and dangerous, your chances of getting bit by a fer de lance in Panama are about equal to getting struck by lightning. Most of those bitten are agricultural workers and in most parts of Panama you are within 45 minutes of a hospital with anti-venom. Even if you are bitten and taken to the hospital, for the first few hours they will be studying your blood tests and observing you before rushing to administer anti-venom. Most of those who die, or have serious consequences, are the very young or old, or those who live far out on one of the Indian comarcas.

The photo at the left shows what can happen if a bit is left untreated.  The photo, from Wikipedia, shows, “Severe tissue necrosis following B. asper envenomation. The victim was an 11-year old boy, bitten two weeks earlier in Ecuador, but treated only with antibiotics.”

The last picture is of Oscar holding his new pet fer de lance. At this point the snake was more-or-less dead, but still wiggling occasionally and able to open it’s mouth. The name fer-de-lance means the “head of the lance” and you can see some of the distinct arrow head shape of the pit viper head.

A day like yesterday always prompts a question that goes something like, “Well, honey, are you ready to move back to Ventura, California?” My wife’s response is usually something like, “Are you kidding?” It is easier to watch out for fer de lance than it is to watch out for drive-by shootings in Southern California! You just learn to watch where you walk! I have three BIG dogs for crying out loud. Believe me, you’d better watch where you walk! So you just don’t step in the poop and you don’t step on the fer de lance.

So, thus endeth Tuesday . . .

With my favorite end-of-the-day beverage . . . our freshly squeezed orange juice grown right here on our farm, with a shot of Amaretto, and watching the sun set!

The French Are Driving Me Nuts!

I don’t know why, but it’s the French. When I go on the ROYAL PRINCESS were will be visiting two French islands (St Barts and Devil’s Island, and one more-or-less, now less, “French” island, St. Lucia. St. Lucia bounced back and forth between the French and the English . . . “What’s the flag-of-the-day, dear, are we French or English this week?” . . . I don’t know why but this particular lecture has been a whole lot of hassle! Maybe it’s just the French.

St. Barts brags that it has “more millionaires per square meter than any place else in the Caribbean”, and the big attraction for locals is to go to Nikki Beach and watch the rich and famous and Hollywood celebrities frolicking in the surf. Some arestunning, with bodies beautiful, but a lot, and certainly some of the most famous, the ones I would know . . . look just like you and I . . . sagging bellies and drooping swim suits. Doubt it? Just do a Google picture search on “celebrity St Barts” and see what you come up with. Tip: it’s more fun to do it with your safe search filter turned “off”! Anyway since Nikki Beach is the hot, sexy, horribly expensive place where the rich and famous go, I know that’s where the not-so-rich-and-famous guests from ROYAL PRINCESS will want to go. So, anticipating their need to gawk, I emailed the following to Nikki Beach . . .

And this is the response I got!

Well, what I emailed was more like this . . .

So, look for me with the beautiful people at Nikki Beach! Enough about the French and rich-and-famous . . .

Kudos to Panamanian Business!

I know I bitch sometimes about the way Panamanian retail does business, and what little sense of customer service I observe. Well, you need to balance my complaints against this . . .

Tony Orta is a fellow I met via this blog. We’ve emailed back and forth and he was coming to Panama, planning to be in Boquete last Sunday, and we were planning on having dinner together to chat about our experiences retiring to Panama. I got an email from him saying that he had to postpone his trip because his father had a heart attack. It turns out his father is 101 years old. And today Tony sent me this follow up . . .

Richard: In anticipation of the trip I was taking to Panama, which just recently had to be cancelled, I had made reservations in Hotels in Panama City, Boca Chica and Boquete. I had also made reservations on Air Panama, and with a car and driver in Chiriqui. I had also made appointments with lawyers in Panama and realtors in Boquete.

In order to facilitate my exit here in the US. I had likewise made reservations with the international airline, a driver to the airport here, and a hotel at the airport prior to departure.

Well, when I cancelled all of the above, explaining the reason for my cancellation being the illness of my father, ALL of the Panama based businesses agreed to cancel without a penalty or charge, and ALL of the businesses based in the US charged penalties and other charges.

There is something right about a culture that places the value of family above the policies of profit making. In every case, the Panamanian businesses sent their best wishes for the recovery of my family. Certainly not the case with the US based businesses. That is definitely a country I wish to live in. Interesting footnote to the culture of the country where you live. Tony Orta

The rose is for those Panamanian companies who did it right . . . and made a friend for Panama, and a customer who will be back, and will spread the word.

However, a lot of Panamanian companies and some individuals don’t do it right . . . which leads me to this quote from a gringo friend, who himself has lots of construction experience on big projects, and who is building a house here in Panama . . . and whose builder, having taken 80% of his money is asking for more money even although he’s only finished 60% of the job . . . sound familiar??

“Building in Panama is one giant Ponzi scheme!”

You got that right! Builders take their profit out up front and then . . . good luck!! Hopefully, if they have some integrity, they will take the money from the next project to finish your project, but if the worldwide economy slows, and if there isn’t another project flush with initial money coming down the pike . . . guess what? Last guy gets screwed royally!

Which is exactly what my builder did. Used my money to finish another gringo’s house . . . well, truth is he never actually “finished” . . . “finished” is a loosely used word in a contractoreese . . . bought himself a new truck . . . then conveniently, with 97% of my money [Yes, I was stupid! But I thought the guy was honest and wanted to help him, as well as get my house done!], only having completed 70% of the job. That’s when I told him to get his ass off my project. So, guess what . . . no warranty, not that a warranty actually means anything in Panama. So now when it turns out the plumber didn’t actually use any glue to hold the PVC pipes together, and the pipe underneath all that expensive tile in the guest bathroom has separated, and I have to hire a real plumber to rip everything up and fix it . . . my guy’s driving around in the new (dark green) Toyota truck he bought with my money . . . and some poor gringo, who is innocent and virgin in Panama, is about ready to get the shaft. You can’t talk to enough people, particularly gringos, and Panamanians, if you can find folks who aren’t related to the contractor you’re considering . . . before making a commitment.  My contractor did the same thing to the three gringo houses he built before me: I just didn’t talk to enough people.   He seemed like a nice guy.  My “gut feeling” told me he was honest.  Yeah, but isn’t that the case with every con man?   So you put it in the contract . . . so what? It doesn’t mean a thing! In the end the contractor will say, “So, sue me?” and you’ll find out that all of his assets are in his wife’s name. I may actually sue my guy. I know it will cost me more money, and in the end I will get nothing, but I will hopefully prevent others from being scammed by this guy. And, suddenly, there will be things like my contract and my suit that are public record, and you will be able to click on the thumbnail and read it all.

What about some builder’s association, or the licensing board, or the architect under whose license this guy worked . . . isn’t there any self-regulation? Remember, I told you that these guys are all related? Who is going to go against their brother-in-law?

So, piracy is alive and well in Boquete!

And lest you think I’m being too harsh . . .

 

A Rainy Night in Boquete

The weather this “rainy season” in Boquete has been strange . . . not that much rain. Usually by September it is raining every afternoon, but not this year. Usually the rain is a welcome relief and a good excuse for me not to work, a chance to sit back and read a book or at night have a fire in the fireplace to take off the chill and the dampness.

My project right now is finishing the remodeling of the little casita our worker lived in, to get it ready for my brother Ed to move into. And we are making very good progress. It’s a good example of the fact that you don’t haveto spend a fortune to live in Boquete. Figuring in the value of the land, the original investment, and the remodeling, it will be a very nice 900 sq ft casita for under $35,000.

Now some business . . .

Ron, who read my “18 Rules for Retail Businesses in Panama”  had some of his own suggestions . . .

Good morning, Richard: If you ever decide to re-issue your “Eighteen Rules”, you might consider the addition of two more:

19) Never permit your employees any measure of authority or responsibility to accommodate a customer without referring the matter to management. This could lead to the dreaded state of customer satisfaction.
20) Never permit a customer to breach the barrier that isolates management from the real world where the employee interacts with the customer This could lead to management having to actually deal with a customer’s problem with the same terrible result as item 10).

A very good Panamanian friend of mine, who chooses to be anonymous, but acts as my “conscience” when I disrespect the bounds of cultural awareness and differences, responded to the same blog . . . Here’s some of what he had to say . . .

Some of your statements in my opinion are absolutely correct . . . I always have good customer service and sometimes not only good but very good . . . And I believe this has nothing to do with the store policy. I did notice alot of differences depending on who the employees were dealing with [locals or extrajeros]. . . . I wondered if you ever get a good customer service from Panamanians? To me, Panamanians are very nice people, though when it comes to been an employee in my opinion they are managed like cattle . . . Since reading this blog, now I feel as a Panamanian, that [the perception is that] we do not give a good service.

Please, share how you would manage a retail store or any other business. And very honestly, I consider you a very good critic, a man who see the both sides of the coin. It would help foreigners who plan to invest in Panama and some Panamanians who are maybe dealing with a project and have no idea of of how to manage people, or have no MBA, but simply want to start a little store.”

My friend knows how to poke me, gently, but in the right places. I promise more. There is a real need here. As I’ve mentioned before I see so many folks who want to go into business, who have a sign painted, make a logo, and open for business . . . and three months later are closed having only lost money. It’s one of the reasons I’m excited about the new university project I alluded to a few weeks ago, that eventually will make business courses available to anyone in the country with Internet access.

Lynn McKee, who has the Century 21 franchise here and in Bocas, wrote . . .

This is so funny and mostly true! Although the other day just to put it to the test I bought an ice cream sandwich in a cup which turned out to be mush when I got to the car. So I trotted back into the Romero in Bugaba and showed them my problem and was allowed to go pick another one which I took from the very back of the “freezer”. Excitedly I returned to my patiently waiting spouse in the car and opened up the new “treet” to find – yep -more mush! So I decided not to give up as I usually do and headed back one more time. I was cheerfully given my refund and an apology to go with it!

After returning to the parking space and my long suffering spouse (who hasn’t said a word about my diet) I looked out the window and saw (in the store next door) a Dos Pinos freezer in the front window! Score! I walked in with intrepidation and picked one out of the freezer, felt it and there it was, nice and frozen! At this point I didn’t even care how many times it has been frozen. It is hot out, I am hungry and I am on an ice cream mission. The nice cashier (who is surprisingly not talking on the phone or to another employee) pleasantly takes my money and actually asks me if I need a spoon (for my ice cream sandwich in a cup) to which I cheerfully respond; no Gracias, it’s perfect just like it is. Every once in while we are surprised with good service and it is, shall we say, “remarkable”. Lyn McKee

The freezer that frustrates me is Deli Baru in Boquete . . . the only place to get Häagen-Dazs . . . best diet food out there . . . usually your choice of ONE flavor, and usually frozen, thawed and refrozen, at least once!

Bonnie has a new one on logos . . .

Speaking of logos, I saw an intriguing motto painted on a service vehicle in David: “It’ll itch your ass.” Couldn’t tell what the product was, but I assume the motto is a loose translation of “It’ll tickle your fancy.”

Cartagena . . .

Reading forums on Cruise Critic you are so knowledgeable about ports in Panama and Panama Canal ports, do you have any recommendations on independent tours in Cartagena? Thanks. Marge

Sorry, Marge. With independents you pay your money and hope for the best. Sometimes they are great, and save you money . . . and sometimes they are disorganized, push you into their brother-in-law’s shop (as opposed to the “preferred stores” of the cruise line!), and once in a while they get you back to the pier after the ship has sailed. You can look for others recommendations on line, then work by email and PayPal and hope for the best, or you can let the cruise line do all the work, monitor the tour operators performance, be sure they have insurance, etc., and pay a little more, and go with a group. With only a short amount of time in a port as marvelous as Cartagena, I think the best and most efficient use of your time is to book a shore excursion with the cruise line.

Dam ship . . .

Hi Richard. I have been reading about you all through the Cruise Critic boards. Any chance you will be on the Oosterdam’s 11/2/09 transit? I hope so… Linda

Hi Linda! Right now I’m scheduled to be home until the end of November, and then I’m off on ROYAL PRINCESS until the end of March.

Embera . . .

Richard, This is our first Panama Canal cruise and so we don’t want to miss the experience of going through the locks but I did want to see the Embera Village people. Is there another place where I will see them, see the kids dance, buy their wares? Marlene

Marlene, If you are docking at Cristobal Pier in Colon there are always groups of Embera there from two different villages. They sell their craft work and usually perform dances in the area with the bar just as you come back into the pier from your tours. Their craft is usually set up right beside the gangway.

Living Will . . .

From Dixie Elwell . . .

MY LIVING WILL

Last night, my husband and I were sitting in the living room and I said to him,
‘I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and
fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug.’

He got up, unplugged the Computer, and threw out my wine.

Well . . . that’s a deep subject!

Just starting to build our house this week, between David and Boquete…thanks for all the advice. Maybe we should quit while we’re ahead. But hey, I’m up for the adventure. Can you tell me if you recommend a well driller? Linda

Unfortunately, no. My advice in the Boquete area is forget drilling a well. I have two. One works . . . but only in the wet season! Guess why I spent a lot of money to drill a well . . . I wanted a back up water supply in the DRY season. I understand these guys have better luck in the lowlands.

Been there, done that . . .

Thanks for all the info on the Panama Canal. Thinking of taking the cruise in 2010. What ships do you think have the best cruise there. No children; adults 60+. Thanks, Betty

Generally, the “mass market” ships [Carnival, Royal Caribbean, NCL] cater more to families and havelots of kids, particularly when kids are out of school. The more expensive cruise lines will generally havefewer kids, and particularly on longer cruises. Makes sense. Most of the Panama Canal cruises are longer, and more expensive, so they rule out a lot of families. Sometimes grandparents will take all the kids and their families, but usually this is only during vacation times. You won’t find a cruise line with a “no children” policy, but generally on Holland America or Celebrity, on a longer and more expensive cruise, at a time when most kids are in school, you will have few if any kids. On ZUIDERDAM we would usually have 6-10 children, most involved in a well-run “Club HAL” program. At Christmas . . . 250 kids! In generally Holland America would be a good choice.

The marvelous Internet . . .

One of the fun things for me has been to have friends from my past with whom I have lost contact, find me online, and re-establish a connection . . . Ray Hommes, with whom I went to junior high; Richard Canter whom I worked with in college for several summers at camps; Jay Groendyke my best friend in college . . . and others who’ve stumbled on my Blog! Now two more old friends . . .

What a world this technology offers us! I won’t even try to explain how I came upon your website. Suffice it to , I did! And the first thing I read was this piece about Robert Stauter. All the memories of my AIM year came back- and more. I must say you sound well and your life full. Good for you! And mine is the same. 20 years now as a Catholic priest. And life keeps moving on, and I sometimes just try to hang on for the ride! Stay well, Richard. I will enjoy tapping into this website often to read of your adventures! Tom DeVries

Dick, What are you doing in Panama? I haven’t heard hide nor hair of you in years. I was actually looking for Henry Kwant and when I typed in his name, your piece came up. Let me know what you’ve been up to. Harry Kooyman

One Year Ago Today

One year ago today I fired the contractor who was building my house. He had already run ONE YEAR over the contracted completion date, had spent 97% of my money and only completed 70% of the project. Yes, he was able to finally finish the gringo house he was working on before mine, and he did buy himself a new Toyota truck  [Many contractors here take their profit up front, knowing that they bid low and probably won't be able to finish the job!  And if you think I'm being too harsh, I didn't really come down here to get screwed.] .  So a year ago this contractor was out of money . . . my money! . . . and nowhere near completing the project, and I had to leave on the ZUIDERDAM in two months.

As an interesting background, when my wife was running around trying to get a certificate of occupancy, early this year, we discovered that the builder had never pulled a building permit!!! In spite of the fact that the building department, fire department, electrical company, and health department had all inspected and approved everything . . . a building permit was never issued!!   Go figure how and why that happened!   The builder guy did . . . and frankly this surprised me . . . show up and pay for the permit and pay the fine.

A friend of mine, Brad Abijian, told me that if at the end of the project there is one worker, or sub, or service provider that you would choose to work with again, you will be lucky! Lots of folks have asked who designed our house, and who did what . . . so here is some of my experience, and the names of those I would choose to work with again.

Designers: My wife, Nikki, and Idesigned and redesigned the house until we knew exactly what we wanted. We let our architect have a go at it before we laid our design on him just to see what he might come up with. When we saw his tentative plan, we knew he hadn’t listened to a word we said: it looked like it was cut and pasted from every other gringo house in Boquete. So we gave him our plan and said, draw it exactly, design a roof line, and do the working drawings.

Design consultant: Our friend, Brad Abijian worked and reworked our plan with us, pointing out potential issues and helping us with traffic flows.

Architect: Unfortunately this young man either didn’t listen to us or took it upon himself to change things. Since the plans were in metric I didn’t catch many of the changes until it was too late. He eliminated a key window, shrank windows in bathrooms where we wanted a lot of light, lowered the plate line, put in standard doors instead of the over-sized doors I had specified, put a dormer in the wrong place – not discovered until it was too late to change. He had totally changed the design of the fireplace to look like the fireplace in every other gringo home he has designed, which was exactly what I did not want. In fairness I didn’t pay additional to have him supervise construction, but by then I had already discovered some things that I didn’t like. And fortunately my builder did discover a major bearing wall that had no support. The 56″ wide dishwasher he called for in the plan, as far as I can discover, doesn’t exist for home use.  This guy loves high spaces, which I designed to a height I thought worked, so my living room works a lot better than it does in some of the houses this guy designed to his own taste.

Builder: This guy is fairly good with the concrete structure. Walls were straight, corners were square, windows and places for cabinets were as designed in the plan. Most of the concrete work was actually done by Vionedes Maya, a Palmira neighbor who worked for the contractor from day one, was a great worker. I hired him to help me finish after I fired the contractor, and I’ve used him on a couple jobs since. The workers were always complaining that they didn’t have cement, paint, wire, electrical outlets, etc.: I guess I should have read the handwriting on the wall since I was paying the contractor, and retroactively, now obviously, he wasn’t spending money on my project. I wanted a special kind of window made by a company in Panama City instead of using a local company. I pushed the contractor to get a quote and I told him I’d pay the difference, and I did. What I ended up with I believe were “look alike” windows made locally that have given me all kinds of problems. I guess the contractor thought he could take the extra money, pocket it, and the dumb gringo would never know the difference and, for a while, he was right. He took shortcuts, cut corners, walked away with 97% of my money only doing 70% of the job. This is typical of many Panamanian contractors: they quote low, take their profit up front, and let you hanging at the end.

My advice to people thinking about building in Panama . . . aside from “Don’t!” . . . is that you can’t talk to too many people before committing to a contractor.  These guys all seem nice: don’t trust your gut feeling.  Talk to lots and lots of people, including expats, especially expats.  Understand that almost everyone is related in Boquete and no one is going to speak ill of anyone, even if they know they are irresponsible.  No Panamanian ever said anything bad about my builder, but when I went into the Building Department, after I fired his ass, and told them who had been my contractor they just rolled their eyes.  My guy had done this time and time again to gringos: I was just too stupid to have talked to enough expats to get the real lowdown. 

Cabinets: Marlboro Cabinets from China (no longer in business – at least not selling cabinets.  Instead pushing an Ikea-like line of cheap furniture.) – big mistake. Front doors look nice, disaster to put together, drawer sliders terrible, and glue on some doors coming apart in the humidity of Boquete. The quiet drawer closers we paid extra for one-by-one are failing and preventing the drawers from closing at all, so we have to remove them.

Tile: Roof tile and floor tile, from David Carbarlleda. The installation of the tile was by William, a young guy who worked for the contractor who I’d probably use again, in fact after I fired the contractor, I hired him to finish the job. The contractor picked THE most expensive Spanish tile roof he could find, from David Carballeda, had a guy who had no idea what he was doing install what looked like half the roof, much of it crooked. When I fired the contractor David helped me find a guy who knew what he was doing. My original contractor had laid the roof tiles sideby side instead of overlapping them as they are intended to be installed. It made it look like he had completed more of the roof that way . . . and it cost me another $7,000 to buy enough tiles, then several thousand to pull everything up and do it right.

Water supply: Well, tanks, pressure, reverse osmosis: problems from day one. People who know about drilling wells in the highlands of Chiriqui don’t. I was ignorant about a lot of things and well drilling and water was certainly one of them. In an earlier blog I had criticized the performance of the Aqua Safe of Canada  reverse osmosis, and the owner of the company, Ryan Anthony,  read my blog and was kind enough to provide helpful information to correct the situation.

Marble & Granite Counter tops: Expensive. OK. Tons of paperwork and fine print. Fine print said I should put down 3/4 inch plywood as a base, or they couldn’t guarantee their work. I did: they ripped most of it up and installed much without any base. When I complained that the undermount sink, which they installed, was leaking, I was told my plumber should have sealed it . . . but they installed it. While drilling holes in my green marble desk top they slurped something on the marble, and I still have marks in the marble, and they busted off the Ariston oven door while moving it, presumably moving it holding the oven door. They never mentioned any of this: of course I’m sure the pages and pages of disclaimer I’m sure covered it somehow.

Drywall: I have no idea who the subcontractor was, but I, who am definitely an amateur at drywall, could almost do better.

Plumbing: I have no idea who the contractor had doing this, other than the final product was a mess. Oscar Torres, a plumbing and electrical engineer in Boquete, has helped us unscramble and put things right, and is helping me redo the casita on our property.

One example: Since he didn’t have a right angle connection handy, the original plumber simply heated and bent the PVC . . . of course cutting the flow by half . . . not thinking I would notice that I didn’t have any hot water!  When they ran out of glue they just stuck the pipes together and hoped nobody would notice!   Unfortunately this kind of crap is typical!

Iorn work: My neighbor Elmer Jiminez. Neat guy, and he does good work, moves quickly. Great discovery. Did porch railing, towel bars, etc. I describe something, he makes a sketch and makes ithappen. My kinda guy. No BS, just does it. I’d definitely use him again, and have.

Painters: Lots of them, almost all disappointing. In the end I had my crew finishing the painting. One of the best painters in Panama is a local Indian who was doing grunt work for the contractor. When I fired the contractor I hired two of his guys, Maya and William, and since Sabino Rodriquez had worked well with Maya and William used him to round out our team.  (A lot of times Latinos and Gnobe Bugle Indians do not work well together.) Together we finished the house before I left on the ZUIDERDAM!

Sabino has since moved into a room on our finca, finished high school (at 25 with no support or encouragement from his family), and is now doing cement rapeo work for me. He is a hard worker with an unsual work ethic. He wants to go to University and become an English teacher, not that he speaks English now. He had never painted before. I gave him a brush, and showed him what to do. He is the only Panamanian painter I have seen who never splashed a drop of paint anywhere on anything and carefully cut in corners, etc. Redoing the casita he quickly picked up cement work. Hard worker.

Woodwork and doors – We used Oldemar Rodriquez,  the “dean” of Boquete woodworkers. He does nice work if you can get him. Not terribly organized, but a real craftsman. You just have to wait in line and keep after him. I know my contractor stiffed him, so I tried to work with him and we got mostthings finished. I’d use Oldemar again . . . and I’d drink a lot . . . but the craftsmanship and quality is worth the hassle.  I would not let him use the guy he used to finish our woodwork!  This kid has inhalled way too much spray!  I finally banished him from inside the house since he would overspray on everything.  He only worked a few hours each day and would mess up everyone else’s work thinking only of himself. 

Electrical – I inherited my electrician, and I know he too was stiffed by the contractor, although I suspect on some things he was already paid for the job, then charged me additional for supplies and work. A bit of a prima dona. Now I use Oscar Torres exclusively. He is an electrical and plumbing engineer and his wife is an electrical engineer, so I have more confidence. He works regularly and is highly dependable.

We bought plumbing fixtures, faucets, lock sets, electrical fixtures, paint, etc.  from a number of places, none of which had any sense of customer service.  I guess I’d use them again because I have no choice, but, as with most things in Panama, anyone who comes in her with an iota of a sense of customer service would beat out the competition . . . except that Panama isn’t really a country open to competition.   So the same old companies owned by old families thrive without offering any real customer service.  Unfortunately I bought some of my white line appliances from a major store . . . see the previous sentence . . . and they managed to push off a refrigerator that was last year’s model on me, and it was a floor model to boot!  Alex at Infox in David was fantastic to work with and if I had to do it again I’d buy all of my appliances from Infox.

I still have a punch list of a dozen items to work on . . . and without a contractor, guess who gets to take care of the punch list?  And, of course, since the guy ran with the money and didn’t finish the contract, guess who gets to do the “warranty” work?  Bingo!  Do I hate this contractor’s guts?  Of course!  Being screwed is not my chosen lifestyle.  So why don’t I sue him?  Oh, you virgin to Panama!!  Of course everything is in his wife’s name.  Look, he’s run this scam before . . . he knows what he is doing.  “Next gringo!”  Should he lose his license?  Of course!  Will he?  You’ve got to be kidding! 

So there you have it . . . a year later and I have half a dozen guys I’d use again, so I must be more fortunate than most who are crazy enough to try and build in Panama. I hasten to say that the mix above includes a whole lot of people from a lot of different places: Panamanians (Latino and Nobe Bugle), Europeans, folks from the US, Nicaragua and Columbia. No one country has a lock on hard work and quality, and no one country has only folks trying to scam and get by. There are snakes in the grass . . . everywhere . . .

Including, I might add, my finca in Palmira!

Jonathan, who is helping out on our finca, presented us today with another baby fer de lance . . . we’ve come up with 5 or 6 so far this year that we’ve seen. Jonathan had picked up a pile of clippings and out dropped this guy! Baby fer de lance are actually quite dangerous, being young, hot-headed and stupid . . . and the scary thing is that a mama fer de lance gives birth to up to 80 unruly offspring . . . so that means there may be as many as 70-some brothers and sisters out there . . . and that’s from one female. Rainy season is the time you encounter more snakes. So we need to fumigate the farm with some mean-smelling stuff to drive away the snakes, probably any friends we have, and maybe us as well.

PS – The identification is by my worker Jonathan who speaks no English . . . and we of course speak minimal Spanish, so I am not positive it is a fer delance. The markings look a little different than my snake guide, but maybe it is because this guy is a juvenile. Jonathan points to the shape of the head and the fish hook tail as evidence of it being a fer de lance. Any help from all of you herpatologists out there is welcome!

PSS – And if you’re about to post a “Comment” telling me that you’ve found this wonderful contractor, yada yada yada, and I know that he/she has pulled this underbidding scam with another gringo, or your house isn’t even finished yet, I’m not going to publish it.  Once your house is done . . . and assuming your contractor hasn’t pulled a fast one that I know of on any of my friends . . . then, please comment.

Things That Go Bump In The Night

For an expat living permanently in Panama, or someone considering making an investment in Panama, these are the things that go bump in the night.

Panama’s new President Ricardo Martinelli has stated that he wants foreign investors, and he wants to make things easier for foreign investors. To do so he needs to take a good look at the things that go bump in the night and keep people laying awake at night wondering just how safe is their investment in Panama. I’ve posted previously about some of the most egregious of these . . .

The guy who was publicly critical of his giant bank, urging others not to use his bank . . . and the banking giant, in an incredible PR move decided to freeze all of this guys assets and tie him up in a lengthy court case! “Freedom of speech” is not guaranteed everywhere!

Then there were our friends who invested $1.5 million of their own money to create a wildlife rescue sanctuary, and ended up fleeing Panama, uncertain of the justice of the legal system. [They should have read my post yesterday about Brandon Hein if they think justice is certain anywhere!]

There are those who purchased “rights of possession” property on the coastline and islands, primarily around Boca Chica, who discovered they really didn’t own anything! Fortunately the new Martinelli government is fast-tracking titling waterfront and island land to avoid confusion, and perhaps more importantly, start collecting taxes. [Titled land is recorded and taxed whereas "rights of possession" land is not taxed because although you have the right to possess the land, you do not own it outright.]

Now comes the issue of an expat couple, the Millers, living in Dolega who are up against a huge citrus company owned by Colombians. [Most Panamanians will tell you that all of the problems in Panama are caused by Colombians . . . drugs, crime, even prostitution, although the Panamanian government issues visas to Colombian girls for the express purpose of working as prostitutes in Panama. Obviously no Panamanian girl would think of such a thing!] So the PR department at Citrico S.A. has come up with a unique way to get press attention . . . negative press attention, I grant you, but there is a school of thought that any press, even negative press, is better than nothing.

Here’s a piece that Don Winner of PANAMA-GUIDE  posted about the issue. The opinions are Don’s, not necessarily mine, and are reflective of the type of press Citrico is getting because of their actions in Dolega. [Forgive Don's language: he talks like an expat! And he loves to get credit, which he should!]

Boy, These Guys From Citricos S.A. Are Being Real Pricks…
Saturday, August 15 2009 @ 03:29 PM EDT

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com – I received an update from Dan Miller last night. Dan and Jeanie Miller are retired, citizens of the United States, who reside permanently in the Republic of Panama as “pensionados.” They’ve been living here for years, and they bought a small farm in the in the El Banco area in the District of Dolega, province of Chiriquí. For past couple of weeks these people have been in a fight over an access road to their farm which runs through a citrus grove owned by a company called Citricos S.A. In spite of the fact that there are several court orders prohibiting them from doing so, this company has done everything possible to cut off access to the Miller’s farm and block the access road which runs through the citrus grove. First they put a big padlock on a gate, effectively making the Miller’s prisoners on their own property. Then later, armed with an order from the local legal authorities preventing Citricos S.A. from locking the gate, local townspeople came to the aid of the Millers and removed the gate. In response, Citricos S.A. ordered their employees to dig a ditch across the road with a backhoe. Again, the local townspeople came and filled in the ditch with shovels. Then last night the company returned with a backhoe and dug three more ditches. What’s up with these friggin’ guys. There are clear orders telling them they can’t do what they’re doing, but they’re doing it anyway, so who’s going to make them stop this nonsense? (more)

Annotated Overhead View: In this annotated satellite imagery you can see the general layout of things. Dan Miller informs me this image is about four years old or so, and the house they have built on their property is not reflected in this image, and the small shack that was on their farm has since been removed. But in any case you can clearly see the 400 meter long access road as well as the outline of the Miller’s property. (The unbelievable pricks at) Citricos S.A. dug three ditches across this road last night, one at the gate to the Miller’s property, one in the middle of the citrus grove, and one at the very end of the access road where it intersects with the main road.

It’s Been Like 40 Years or More: From what I understand the Miller’s have everything going in their favor from a legal point of view. The access road appears on the official “Tommy Guardia” maps. It’s been recognized by the Ministry of Public Works as a public access road. It’s been there and has been used by the community for about 40 years or more. And, when challenged, the local courts and governmental authorities have stepped up and decided in favor of the Millers, and they have ordered Citrico’s S.A. to knock it off. But the company is ignoring these orders and continues to do this bullshit.

I Tried To Contact The Company: I got the number from Citricos S.A from their website and tried to call the company. There was no answer, and I’ll try again on Monday morning. I want them to explain their position to me, although I suspect I already know what they will say. They don’t want the Miller’s to be allowed to drive through their citrus farm anymore. What, were they stealing mangos or something? Anyway, I’m sure the company will continue to make their points in the courts, and I suspect the courts will continue to reject their claims and counter-claims, but in the meantime someone really needs to step in and FORCE these guys to stop being such pricks. OK, there’s a dispute – we got it. But digging ditches and ignoring court orders is basically acting like a little bitch – but armed with a backhoe. I guess their point is it’s their land so they are perfectly within their rights to dig a ditch anywhere they want on their land, right? But doing so in order to block vehicular access to a senior citizen who is suffering from cancer and who needs to be able to leave his property in order to attend medical treatments is well beyond my ability to comprehend. I don’t want to go up there myself to see this one because, well, it just would not be a wise move on my part. It wouldn’t be pretty. (I’m thinking, take the backhoe and commence to flatten about 500 citrus trees or something similar, just for starters.)

They Got Money: According to their website, “Citricos S.A. is the largest cultivator of oranges and lemons in Panama, with more than 4,000 hectares designated to the cultivation, harvest, and processing of these fruits. Our specialty is the production of frozen concentrate of the juices of tropical fruits…” A company this large and successful couldn’t come up with a peaceful solution? Find another way around? Create another access road somewhere else? Live in peace and harmony? They have to put a huge padlock on the gate and make these people not virtual prisoners, but actual prisoners of their own property? I mean, what the fuck?

The Media Is All Over It: This company Citricos S.A. is doing the “bang myself in the forehead with a hammer because it feels so good when I stop” routine. This really is self-destructive behavior. In fact, there’s almost no way this comes out being a “win” for Citricos S.A. And for the life of me I can’t figure out what’s actually motivating them. Sheer macho bullshit? I just don’t get it. Anyway, this story has enough legs to go international, and I suspect the eventual outcome will be the government of Panama grabbing the people who are behind Citricos S.A. by the ear and holding them down until the temper tantrum subsides. Then, they will be forced to open the access road. Eventually. But in the meantime, we’re still playing these bullshit games.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

Lee Zelter is also following this story on his blog www.Boqueteguide.comand reports not only on the official condemnation of the actions of Citrico SA by the Mayor (a very powerful position in Panama) but also by the local populace who have demonstrated and condemned the actions of the company.

Incredibly the company’s response to the community was to send out another back hoe and dig three more trenches, ignoring the Mayor, the community, and Panamanian law.
 

If President Martinelli is serious about encouraging foreign investment he needs to address some of these issues which go bump in the night for expat investors.

Sarah’s World and More!!

Welcome to Sarah’s world!

Dianne Heidke, our rebelious, creative, Aussie-in-residence, posted this map on Facebook . . . I thought at first it was Sarah Palin’s familiarization map of the world!

It shows Australia, Dianne, what more do you want??

Jeff Simon on Social Security . . .

Jeff sent me this and although I usually don’t read or forward or post stuff unless it is really good . . . this is good.

“SOCIAL SECURITY:

Perhaps we are asking the wrong questions . . .

Our Senators and Congresswomen do not pay into Social Security and, of course, they do not collect from it.

You see, Social Security benefits were not suitable for persons of their rare elevation in society. They felt they should have a special plan for themselves So, many years ago they voted in their own benefit plan.

In more recent years, no congressperson has felt the need to change it. After all, it is a great plan.

For all practical purposes their plan works like this:

When they retire, they continue to draw the same pay until they die.

Except it may increase from time to time for cost of living adjustments.

For example, Senator Byrd and Congressman White and their wives may expect to draw $7, 800,000.00 (that’s Seven Million, Eight-Hundred Thousand Dollars), with their wives drawing $275, 000..00 during the last years of their lives. This is calculated on an average life span for each of those two Dignitaries.

Younger Dignitaries who retire at an early age, will receive much more during the rest of their lives.

Their cost for this excellent plan is $0.00. NADA!!! ZILCH!!!

This little perk they voted for themselves is free to them. You and I pick up the tab for this plan. The funds for this fine retirement plan come directly from the General Funds;

“OUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK”!

From our own Social Security Plan, which you and I pay (or have paid) into, every payday until we retire (which amount is matched by our employer), We can expect to get an average of

$1,000 per month after retirement.

Or, in other words, we would have to collect our average of $1,000 monthly benefits for 68 years and one (1) month to equal Senator Bill Bradley’s benefits!

Social Security could be very good if only one small change were made.

That change would be to

Jerk the Golden Fleece Retirement Plan from under the Senators and Congressmen. . Put them into the Social Security plan with the rest of us

Then sit back…..

And see how fast they would fix it!

If enough people receive this, maybe a seed of awareness will be planted and maybe good changes will evolve.”

No-fly zone . . .

Both Bonnie Williams and Don Ray Williams of Chiriqui Chatter called me to task for mentioning briefly LifeFlight Panama . . . which, like many restaurants in Boquete, has opened and closed it’s doors while I was gone.  According to Don Winter, writing in Panama Guide . . .

To put a long story in a nutshell, basically powerful Panamanian and foreign businessmen who are already operating in the aviation business recognized the validity of Lifeflight’s business model, that the service was needed in Panama, and that eventually Lifeflight would probably succeed resoundingly. Therefore, those same people intervened with the Panamanian government, specifically the Civil Aeronautics Administration, to block Lifeflight’s requests for permits to operate, in effect cutting the legs out from under their operation. The AAC refused to issue Lifeflight the permits required to fly, transport patients, and charge for the service. They could fly, but not charge. And although the people who did this had done absolutely nothing to start a competing medical evacuation business, they simply wanted to keep the field clean should they decide launch a similar service in the future. Basically, Lifeflight was sabotaged.” 

Looks like another good idea crushed by the powers that be.

Building like there is no tomorrow . . .

Or certainly like there is no financial crisis in the world! According to THE PANAMA STAR . . .

“There are currently 191 skyscrapers under construction in the capital city with an average height of 30 stories each. This suggests that although the property boom has slowed down it has not died out completely. The majority of the projects are being constructed in the neighborhoods of San Francisco, Parque Lefevre and Bella Vista.

The General Comptroller said that 128 projects are in the advanced stage, which is the phase that employs the highest amount of people. Of these, 32 companies have also started new construction in different parts of the capital.

In general terms, the construction sector showed clear signs of recovery during the first semester of this year during which the total revenue from construction permits granted was approximately $1.1 billion. For the same period in 2008, construction permits brought in a maximum of $835 million.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance this growth was due to diverse internal factors, including trust in the Panamanian economic system, the liquidity of the banking sector and tax incentives that promote private investment.

The development of these building projects will keep the construction sector in the capital city stable and it is expected that these positive expansion signs will continue during the rest of the year, probably until 2010, if the demand for apartments and condominiums increases.”

The maid has “cleaned” the stainless steel stove with scouring powder . . .

And the Indian working on my casita remodel has used gypsum drywall “mud” all over the outside of the casita!

Welcome to Panama!

Things could be worse . . .

Lee Zeltzer, who writes an interesting blog Boquete Guide . . . albeit cluttered with advertising and commercial messages . . . sent me this story about a Boquete couple who can’t get to or from their retirement “dream home” investment in nearby Dolega! According to LaPrensa,

“A couple from the United States has been locked into their own land located in the corregimiento of Rovira, district of Dolega, for eight days.

Herbert Daniel Miller and his wife, Jeanie Fiester Miller, have not been able to leave their finca since the gate to their farm was locked by an agricultural company in the district.

The couple’s lawyer, Fidelina V. de Donohoe, stated that this is due to a conflict with a company that is trying to close a neighborhood road that has been used for more than 80 years by the community.

Representatives, Venancio Villarreal from Dos Rios, president of the Municipal Council of Dolega, and Alvaro Martinez of Rovira, explained that there is a resolution dated eight years ago that prohibits the closure of public or neighborhood roads.

“The community complained eight years ago and because of that a resolution prohibiting the closure of gates was issued”, assured Villarreal.

The former mayor, Rafael Rivera, ruled in favor of the American couple asking that the gate be opened, but the company appealed the decision.”

Remember, the government in Panama changed July 1st. In Panama public roads, or roads that have been publicly used for a certain period of time become easements for public access.

According to the Millers,

“On 4 January 2007, the Ministerio de Obras Publicas (MOP) issued a ruling stating as follows concerning the access to our finca across land owned by Citricos: “por lo anteriormente expuesto, se certificaa que el camino en mencion es de uso publico, con una longitud de 420 metros y un ancho de 12.80 metros.”

Based on that certification and the testimony of several witnesses who had lived here for many years, the then mayor of Dolega issued an order to require that the Citricos gate be removed. However, Citricos sought reconsideration based on a procedural flaw by the mayor, and he vacated the order. At his suggestion, we started over again and he later issued another order in our favor. Citricos then appealed this to the Governor. After sitting on it for more than four months, he issued an order directing Citrocosto conduct a visual inspection and provide further information. Contrary to the law as our attorney understands it, we were not advised of this and neither was our attorney.

Suspecting that the Governor was about to issue a decision unfavorable to us, our attorney asked the Superior Court in David to stay any further action by the Governor. This happened, but the Governor in his last days in office disregarded the Court order and found in favor of Citricos.

That’s pretty much where things now stand. Our attorney plans to file something on 27 July to bring this mess to an end; we will see what happens.”

Well according to Miller the saga continues . . . here’s what happened . . .

“Our attorney met with the entire Dolega Municipal Council, including the mayor, all representantes etc. yesterday morning; based to some extent on a order issued about nine years ago, requiring Citricos to remove all gates blocking public access through Citricos property to other places, the Council directed the Corregidora of Rovira to accompany our attorney to our property and to witness the removal of the Citricosgate. A friend came with a power saw and cut one sideof the gate down; he ran out of battery power before the could cut the other side of the gate down.

Very early this morning, a retro came from Citricos and dug a ditch about 5 feet wide, 5 feet deep and about 20 feet wide, extending across the entire entry to the gate; the gate has not been put back up. The ditch, obviously, blocks vehicular access as well as passage on horseback.

Our attorney is now on her way to the Governor and to the Court in David to get something done, ASAP. I think that this time, Citricos has really crossed over the line. I don’t know what “ASAP” means in Spanish.

I’m writing this rather than calling, because both of our phones have only a little calling time left and I want to save what there is for an emergency. Daniel, our worker, was going to get some more cards for us this morning, but could not get out. Its about a half an hour ride on horseback to the nearest place where cards can be purchased. Our attorney promised to bring us some mas movil cards when she comes later today.

Ain’t this exciting!!!???”

Citricos is a restaurant in Disney World, but it is also a Panamanian company, Citricos, S.A. , that produces various fruit juices.  It will be interesting to watch what happens in this case.  Panama’s new President, Ricardo Martinelli, has stated that he welcomes foreign investors in Panama and wants to do everything possible to make it easier to get visas, licenses, etc.  He has fast-tracked titling of ocean front property which is often held by “right of possession” and has become a sore point for many developers and buyers, particularly around Bocas del Toro.  He publically accompanied bull dozers and welders to rip down a fence that illegally, according to the President, fenced off a landfill area that was, again according to the President, illegally made, sending a signal that the rule of law and not payoff would prevail in Panama.

Speaking of oranges . . .

Our oranges are ripe, sweet and delicious!  I’m busy squeezing oranges and freezing orange juice.  A lot of Panamanian oranges aren’t really that sweet, but our are.  An agronomist friend tells me that to get the sweetness in oranges there has to be enough of a temperature variance, and whatever that is, at 4,100 feet we must have it.  The coldest it gets is 61 degrees here, but that must be enough to produce really sweet fruit.

The US Embassy in Panama . . .

is a giant, fortress of a building, inconveniently placed way outside Panama City in Clayton, in what used to be Fort Clayton in the old Panama Canal Zone.

The old US Embassy was on Balboa Avenue right in the center of Panama City.  The building was too small, and too “exposed” and so the US decided to build a new fortress-mentality Embassy far away from ordinary people.  Interestingly when they put the old property up for sale, and it is located in a premium spot, Panama came along and said, “Wait a minute folks!  You have a perpetual lease on the property, but it doesn’t include the right to sell it.”  Ooops!  So now the old Embassy sits there . . . there’s talk of turning it into a museum celebrating the long and glorious history of US/Panama relations . . . omitting a few things like occupying the Canal zone for almost 90 years and the US invasion . . .

Anyway, the new US Embassy, when you finally get there, is nice, and the consular section is well organized and very cordial.  I needed to renew my Passport.  Unfortunately since I live aboard it has to be renewed at the Embassy in person, which requires a 6 hour drive to Panama City and a stay overnight.    But since my wife, Nikki, was coming back from the States, I was able to apply for my new Passport and pick her up in the same trip.  Really unfortunately when my new Passport is ready . . . the application is sent back to the States and everyone waits for the new Passport . . . I then have to return to the Embassy, again in person, to pick it up.  Apart from all that hassle . . . “United States of Hassle” . . .  not much worse than “The Homeland” . . .  it really wasn’t that bad.  The new offices are well laid-out and very efficient.  I drove onto the Embassy grounds at 1:00PM, took 15 minutes getting through security, waited 15 minutes, took care of submitting my application and drove off the Embassy grounds 45 minutes later.  Not bad!

So, with the maid, the damage is done . . . she doesn’t get anywhere near scouring powder again, and with my wife back, she can watch everything like a hawk.  You just can’t assume that a maid really knows anything about maiding.  And I need to go to El Constructor for a bunch of sandpaper to sand off the gypsum “mud” on the outside of the casita. . . or I guess I could just wait for a hard rain.  Again, you don’t assume anything in Panama, including, I guess, that you will continue to have access to your house!

Gotcha: The Truth About Valle Escondido

A fellow named Ted Lincoln asked on Boquete.org, “I just completed a visit to Valle Escondido. It was impressive. Are there any gotchas which I should be aware of which would detract from the rosy picture presented to me at their development?”

I spent so much time crafting a reply, that I thought I out to post it here to share with all of you.

There are pluses and minuses, but IMHO the pluses outweigh the minuses. I’ve written a lot about the almost 5 years we’ve lived full time in Boquete, 4 of those years in Valle Escondido. And yes, I have a home with one of the best views in the Valley for sale.

The pluses:

It is. There are a lot of “dream” projects that may or may not actually materialize, especially given the world financial climate right now. Valle Escondido is a reality! It’s not just a pretty picture and a developer’s dream which may, or may not, happen.

You know what you are getting.  Most of the houses in Valle Escondido have been there for a while. They’ve had time to “settle.” You can see how the house you’re buying has “weathered” Boquete and Panama for a few years.

Security.  Every development promises this, some deliver, a lot don’t. Having a watchman asleep in a gate house really doesn’t provide “security.” Valle Escondido has been doing this for, what, seven years now. Nothing is perfect, but they have it about as good as its going to get. Frankly we left our doors open all the time, and that was when there were hundreds of workers wandering about.

Beautiful! It is!

Working homeowners association in place.   It’s taken a lot of work by a lot of people, but Valle Escondido has a real, live homeowners association that has already worked through most of the inevitable homeowner/developer issues.

Amenities – If you are into golf, etc., and willing to pay for it, the Valle Escondido Resort complex is right there. But if you’re not into that, you don’t have to pay to enjoy the view and have Sam take care of mowing the lawn.

It is pretty much built out.  We went through 4 years of constant construction noise. That’s for the most part over! In a newer development you have that to look forward to.

Inventory  – Right now there is a decent inventory of homes for resale already built. They are nice, up to gringo expectations, so you don’t have to go through all the hassles and uncertainties of building in Panama. See my blog!

Community - There is a community of folks who actually live year-round in Valle Escondido. It’s neat to go to someone’s house for drinks or dinner and just walk home!

5 minute walk to town  – There is something to be said for that!

Minuses -

Sam. Some folks don’t like Sam, some love him. I’ll include Sam as a minus because as developer he comes up as an “issue”. Sam has his strengths, and weaknesses. But face it, Sam is a developer. Show me any development anywhere where homeowners don’t have some issue over something with the developer. Like it or not, Sam put Boquete on the map. Sam has created a beautiful development that is a reality, not a pipe dream. And most of the developer/homeowner issues have already been resolved. Sam lives in Valle Escondido, runs the resort, but at this point is more just a neighbor and seems less and less involved as the Valley matures as a community. Valle Escondido is no longer just about Sam. Yes, you may pay a few cents more per kilowatt because you buy electricity from Sam, but you’re not worrying about the winds blowing down your power lines.

California - Valle Escondido is a beautiful, US-style mixed development with covenants, just what many expats are looking for. We loved living there, but as it built out it became too much like the upscale California developments we left behind. That wasn’t why WE moved to Panama. If that’s what you want, Valle Escondido is it! A golf course that’s open! An indoor pool and club house! A tennis court (is there another in Boquete?). Yeah, you have to pay to join, but it’s there! For us the US-style development became a minus, but for others it is a giant plus.

It may cost more than some, true, but . . . IMHO if you are looking for a planned community, it is worth it. The reason to come to Panama is no longer just that it’s cheap: the reason to come to Boquete is the lifestyle, and Valle Escondido is probably one of the best expressions of an upscale expat lifestyle.

Will you take a moment?

Over 150,000 folks have visited my little blog and I’d really appreciate your help! If you haven’t done so already, let me know how you happen to be here. It’s totally annonymous. No salesman will call, no identifying information will be retained, nada! Thanks for the help!

Read on!

From The Reading Room

Senior Noriega . . . The General of an Army of One, Himself

Panama abolished it’s army after the US invasion and the Noriega episode. Panama has no army. But Noriega, when captured by the US and whisked off to prison in Miami was a General and captured as a prisoner of war. As such, for all these years that he has been in federal prison in Miami, he has been treated as a POW, entitled to be called “General Noriega”, wear his generals uniform and live in a classy prison suite of private rooms, in essence living in prison like a general. Only trouble is, he is a general with no army! Having completed his US prison sentence, with time off for good behavior, the US now has to decide what to do with Noriega. Noriega claims to be a born-again Christian and wants to return home to Panama. Panama says it wants him back, but with Panama on an economic roll, the last thing it wants is Noriega back. Aside from the host of legal problems Noriega faces if he comes back to Panama, the Panamanian government has already sold off most of Noriega’s homes. France wants Noriega for 10 years on money-laundering charges. The problem for Noriega is that if he goes to France he won’t be a POW, won’t be a “general”, won’t get any special treatment, but just be another inmate. So for months this has been kicking around in the courts, meantime Noriega gets a nice room, and board, in a Miami federal prison.

According to Associated Press . . .

MIAMI (AP) — Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop his extradition to France to face money-laundering charges.

Attorneys for Noriega filed papers Tuesday seeking a Supreme Court review. Three federal judges in Miami and a federal appeals court have refused to stop the extradition. The Supreme Court will likely decide whether to hear Noriega’s case in the fall.

Noriega contends that the Geneva Conventions rules for prisoners of war require that he be returned home to Panama. Noriega was declared a POW by a federal judge after his 1992 conviction on U.S. drug racketeering charges. Noriega finished serving his prison sentence in 2007.

Noriega was ousted from power after the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama.

Richard just wondering how the road into Boca Chica is now? Will be down in July for Vacation. Road used to be pretty bad. Jiamesmcmil

Jim, You would not know it was the same road!! It is paved all the way from the Pan American Highway to Boca Chica! Gone are the days of getting stuck in my 4 wheel pick up behind some big ice truck headed to Gone Fishing or Seagull Cove without 4 wheel . . . so the truck is up the the axles in clay mud . . . and everyone behind it is stuck until it gets unstuck . . . if it gets unstuck. It’s actually cut about a half hour off the trip from the highway to Boca Chica!

Property tax in Panama and hospitals . . .

Hi Richard, My husband and I are beginning our investigations into life in Boquete,  from the perspective of a full time resident. However, as you must know, we have zillions of questions….but just this for you. How much is the real estate tax for your Casa #56 and what is the Boquete real estate tax rate per $100K value? If you can steer us to any particular website that would give us a good overview of such a move (including available medical facilities), it would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Linda & Josef Bruder

Linda & Josef, Thank you for prodding me on medical facilities . . . I had promised a blog on medical issues in Panama, and I promise I will deliver on that . . . and the long awaited Embera page. Right now I’m deep in projects on the farm, and with my ROYAL PRINCESS gig coming up in November have a whole list of lectures to work on.

The house I have for sale in Valle Escondido has 15 years of property tax exemption remaining. That goes with the house and gets passed on to the buyer. As to other property tax rates in Panama . . . This is from www.panamarealtor.com

Article 764 of the Panamanian Tax Code indicates which properties are exempt from property tax. These properties include:

• Properties registered at a value of 30,000 USD or less including improvements to the land, i.e. construction
• Land used exclusively for farming and registered with the Ministry of Agriculture and Development at less than 150,000 USD

The tax basis should be understood as being the value of the land plus the improvement. Article 766 of the Tax Code goes on to establish the property tax table to be the following:

If you have a property valued at 100,000 USD you should pay the following in property taxes:  2.10% of 100,000 USD (0.00 USD for the 0 -30,000 bracket which is tax exempt) + (349.98 USD for the 30,001 – 50,000 bracket at a rate of 1.75%) + (487.48 USD for the 50,001-75,000 bracket at a rate of 1.95%) + (524.98 USD for the 75,001 – 100,000 bracket at a rate of 2.1%) = a total of 1362.44 USD for annual property taxes

So $1362 for a $100K property is more than I was paying in property taxes, Under Prop 13, for my Ventura hillside house overlooking the ocean. The 20-year tax exemption, which is now 5 to 15 years on new construction with the higher exemption going to less expensive homes, obviously more beneficial to middle class Panamanians, is they key consideration in my opinion for purchasing property in Panama.

Yes, Panama can be “cheaper”, a lot cheaper, but not necessarily so. It depends on where you are living in the States or elsewhere in the world. The reason for thinking of moving to Panama should not be because it is “cheaper”, but because it is a spectacularly beautiful country, with a temperate climate, and what can be a very “tranquil” quality of life. If you are thinking of retiring quality of life should be your primary consideration. Of course for most of us the “quality” is going to be better if we have sufficient funds to enjoy retirement.

Where are the criminals?

Richard, I enjoy your blog concerning life in and around Panama. I’m considering retirement there. However the injection of your political views is a bit much. I am a firm believer in Free Speech etc,but this reminds me of the daily “hate fest” rantings of Olberman/Maddow etc. Just where should societies criminals be?????? Michael W. Paulin

Michael, I have no idea who Olberman/Maddow are . . . ???? . . . Forgive me, I live in Chiriqui and am somewhat, intentionally, out-of-touch with, I assume, US television? But, as we’ve all just discovered, many of the big criminals have been sitting in Wall Street and corporate offices! Yes, we do need prisons, hopefully to reform, redirect and rehabilitate (of course that costs money) where possible . . . and we need alternatives to prison. What’s wrong with our society when we lock more people up than anyplace else??

I don’t expect all readers to agree with me . . . hell, I don’t always agree with me . . . but it is my blog and that’s what blogging is about.

Tooth aches . . .

I’d like to know the names of some dentists in David. We’ve been going to Mexico for dental but since we are considering a trip to Panama and David in particular, maybe we can do just as well there. Karen Coppes

Karen, I hate to tell you, because he’s already the most expensive dentist in town, and I don’t want demand upping his prices any more, but after some frightening and frustrating experiences with local dentists, I discovered Franklin Halphern in David. He is excellent, better than my dentist in California who I loved. He trained in Rio, speaks Spanish, Portuguese, and enough English, and is always going to seminars to keep up with the latest techniques. A lot of expats use him. He is expensive, by local standards, but good.

Soothing the aches of . . . is it working . . . or age?

One of the things I really enjoy is sitting in my spa on the back porch, looking out at the coffee and Volcan Baru, relaxing, sipping wine and reading what I call “trashy books.”  They aren’t really “trashy” but they aren’t real intellectual either . . . just “escape” reading. [I really do more reading in the spa than on the john, but I thought the picture was cool.  What can I say: I have a "white trash" sense of humor.] When I was on Holland America for five months I really missed being able to sit in the spas.  Ordinary crew on Holland America isn’t allowed in the spas.  Unless you are a “four-stripper” [actually the spell check doesn't like "striper", but, believe me, they are "stripers" not "strippers"], senior officer, i.e., Captain, Hotel Manager, Chief Engineer, Chief  Officer, you aren’t allowed in the spas, and none of these guys would be crazy enough to get in the spa with guests and be inundated with silly questions.  One of the nice things about my next contract on Princess is that I will have full guest privileges . . . so that means I can sit in the spa, and sit on a bar stool, and enjoy the piano bar.  Unfortunately I won’t have access to the “entertainment account” to buy guests drinks.  Oh well, nothing is perfect.

Back to the reading . . . once in a while I come across some writer’s prose that, well, just strikes me.  This is Len Deighton in MAMista, “The International Bestseller” which I know all of youread 8 years ago, but I move slowly.  This seemed strangely appropos to poor Barack Obama . . .

“There was a time when the president of the United States of America was required to apply an almost philosophical mind solely to the affairs of the nation.  But now he’d become a supermayor as well for a malfunctioning township that stretched from coast to coast.  His daily concerns still encompassed the wider issues: his party, the budget deficit, the balance of trade and foreign policy, civil rights and the environment.  But now he was expected as well to take care of drug abuse, abortion, pollution, savings and loan accounts, urban blight, day care for infants, and even layoffs in Southern California.”

And that was eight years ago when the job was easy!

China Crap

When I was a kid “Made In Japan” equalled “inferior junk.” Now, many, many years later, “Made In Japan” has become, for the most part, a signature of quality.

Will China ever get there?

I doubt it.

We’re stuck with most hardware coming from China. Doesn’t make any difference where you buy it, or what the brand name is, likely it is made in China and very likely it is crap.

Take the cabinets we bought for our house. Burmese Cherry. Made in China. Crap. Cabinets came with no directions for installation, and it was definitely like a Chinese puzzle. Some drawer units were impossible to assemble, even for a “Little Person”, which, I think is the politically correct term for very small people. The hardware had a 25% failure rate to start with. We paid extra for magnetic drawer closers that would pull the drawers fully shut and keep them from slamming. They don’t work, and besides generally fall out of the asembly. About a third of the door fronts have either cracks or are separating at the joints. [Photos I provided to Marbol] The wine rack we ordered wasn’t made according to the very specific instructions and drawings we provided. And the cabinets with drawers we ordered for our closet, with matching counter tops (for which we paid!) we shipped with just scrap pieces of wood from cabinets with totally other finishes. This company could give a rip about our satisfaction and have now decided to go out of the cabinet business. They have disappeared along with their Web site which featured pictures of beautiful kitchens just lifted from US kitchen cabinet company Web sites. I guess Marbol is still hustling granite counter tops, but they’re out of the cabinet business, so I’m stuck and need to make the best of what I’ve got and repair the doors myself.  They are still beautiful cherry cabinets, and look great . . . but I didn’t pay to go through all this shit.

The problem is, no matter what store you buy from, and even if it’s an old US name that used to indicate quality, it’s made in China, and likely won’t work.  Westinghouse used to mean quality, now it generally means “Made In China.”  I end up replacing lamp light switches every couple of months, and no matter what store I go to, all the lamp light switches are Westinghouse. 

My latest is the Black & Decker hammer drill I bought a month ago and have only used about a dozen times.  My Dewalt drill was stolen by one of the people who worked on our house while I was away on a cruise.  [Second Dewalt drill I've had stolen in Panama.  The thieves know a good drill.]  So I went out to buy another.  I looked up the drill I wanted on HomeDepot.com so I’d have an idea what I wanted, what the product number was, and about what it would cost.  When I started looking I discovered two things.  One, there’s no competition in Panama.  Didn’t make any difference which store you went to, the price was more or less the same.  Second, gratuitously, every drill was $50 more than Home Depot.  OK, I guess that’s just the price you pay for living in Panama.  But I don’t use a drill frequently so I figured I could get by with the cheaper Black & Decker.   So I ended up paying $51.50 for a Black & Decker drill.  I have no idea what this sells for in the States, because it doesn’t.  You can’t find it on the Black & Decker Web site, and if you go to the Black & Decker Web site it doesn’t even recognize that the Republic of Panama exists.

All the drills the local hardware store had used keys.  It’s beyond me why Black & Decker would even make a drill that wasn’t keyless, but . . . maybe clueless , they do.  So you spent 90% of your project time looking for the dam key.  And they must know it, because they put a little thingy on the power cord to stick your key in, as if anyone would actually do that in the midst of switching drill bits back and forth.  If you’re going to insist on a key, why not at least figure a cord out to attach it to the drill?

Anyway, I use my Black & Decker HD450-B3 drill for the thirteenth time, to drill through concrete, which is what a hammer drill is for, and guess what . . . the drill bit holder thing-a-ma-jiggy breaks off.  Just like the cheap Made in China screws that break apart when you try and use them.  So I look to see where Black & Decker is made . . . you got it!  “Made in China.”  Another piece of Chinese crap . . . and I’m screwed again by China.

Oh yeah, the local hardware store I purchased it from . . . trying to keep the money in Boquete . . . went out of business July 1st. 

You just gotta enjoy being screwed if you’re going to make it as an expat.

Has anyone in China figured out that if you screw the whole world producing inferior, or contaminated products, that people won’t want stuff that’s made in China?

Well apparently a lot of people are getting pissed off at products made in China . . . and at the companies that sell Chinese made products.  According to LawyersandSettlements.com , obviously a somewhat biased source, I admit . . .

When it comes to purchasing products with the label “Made in China”, Caveat Emptor–let the buyer beware. Generally, consumers equate these three words with cheap and shoddy products. Now, “Made In China” also spells “Danger”.

The list of defective Chinese goods is long, from pet food containing melamine to toothpaste tainted with antifreeze, Five types of imported seafood were found to be laced with chemicals and, although no fatalities or illnesses have been reported in the U.S. yet, Chinese counterfeit glycerin found in cough syrup has been linked to more than 100 deaths in Panama.

In the wake of the US stepping up testing of Chinese products, the Chinese government reports that it closed 180 food plants and discovered 23,000 safety violations. Most disturbing is the amount of defective Chinese goods that have slipped through US investigators’ safety nets.

The Regulators
In 2003, leaders in China formed the State Food and Drug Administration but the agency was riddled with problems, from weak investigative procedures to corrupt officials. First director Zheng Xiaoyu was convicted of taking bribes from domestic pharmaceutical companies to approve untested medicine and was later executed.

The FDA in the United States also has its problems. Lack of funding and competition with 11 other federal regulatory agencies make it almost impossible to police our food supply.

Food
China has recently risen to be one of the world’s top agricultural exporters: in just four years, from 2002 to 2006, FDA-regulated foods imported from China more than doubled and experts predict the number to triple by the end of 2007.

Chinese foods are pervasive in most American kitchens; from additives such as xanthum gum (used as a thickener in dairy products, salad dressings and most frozen foods including ice cream) to preservatives such as ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). Most breakfast cereals are made in China.

Companies such as Kellog and General Mills are just now beginning to test additives such as wheat in their products. (Menu Foods pet recall found melamine in wheat gluten”a discovery that sounded the alarm bells to potential dangers in human food supply.) Recently, Veggie Booty was recalled after an outbreak of salmonella was traced back to the snack food. According to the US maker, salmonella was found in a spice imported from China that was used to season the snack food.

Toys
China produces 80 percent of the world’s toys, some of which contain lead paint. Soon after Target recalled about 200,000 Kool Toyz action figures because of sharp edges and lead contamination, Toys “R” Us discovered that the same Chinese company that manufactured those toys also made the Elite Operations figures in its stores. More recently, Mattel Inc., the world’s largest toymaker, recalled 1.5 million China-made Sesame Street, Dora the Explorer and other children’s products as they might contain “excessive levels” of lead. Eighty-one other types of Fisher-Price branded toys sold in US stores since May 2007 are included in the massive recall.

And lead paint isn’t restricted to toys: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled children’s jewelry from China that potentially could cause lead poisoning.

Tires
In June 2007, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration ordered a recall of 450,000 defective radial tires for pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and vans. A New Jersey importer notified officials that its Chinese manufacturer had stopped including gum strips, a safety feature that holds the tire together and prevents it from separating.

(Tread separation led to the recall of millions of Firestone tires in 2000; this particular tire failure was linked to an increased risk of rollover of light trucks and SUV’s.)

The faulty tires are believed to have caused a car accident in Pennsylvania in August of 2006 that killed two people. A lawsuit filed by the families alleges the accident happened because the tire lacked the gum strip. The lawsuit alleges the Chinese company removed the critical gum strip after the initial test tires were manufactured. Consumer advocates said this case exposes significant loopholes in the system that regulates products in the United States.

Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) has called for a full investigation into the importation of the defective tires.

The New Jersey tire importer sued the manufacturer of the tires, Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber, in a New Jersey court. The Hague Convention is a policy which allows foreign corporations to be sued in different countries. Tire manufacturer Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber has been served under the Hague convention.

Other Lawsuits
As well, a number of lawsuits have been filed against importers of Chinese products. Menu Foods, the Ontario pet food maker whose Chinese-sourced product contained melamine, faces more than 100 class action lawsuits. A proposed class action has been filed against the distributor of various Thomas & Friends� wooden railway toys.

As long as companies continue to import Chinese goods, it is inevitable that more class actions will be filed.